High temperature stuffer crimping apparatus



Aug. 12, 1969 J. R. HODGES HIGH TEMPERATURE STUFFER CBIMPING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 23. 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. 7AM ES 7P Hopp ATTORNEY Aug. 12, 1969 Y J, R, HODGES 3,460,214

HIGH TEMPERATURE STUFFER CRIMPING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 23, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 8- 12, 1969 J. R. HODGES 3,460,214

HIGH TEMPERATURE STUFFER CRIMPING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 23, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet :3

FIG. 4

INVENTOR. U-TAMES HODQ 'S ATTORNEY s- 12. 969 J. R. HODGES 3,460,214

HIGH TEMPERATURE STUFFER CRIMPING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 23, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 5

INVENTOR.

names PH S ATTO RNEY United States Patent 3,460,214 HIGH TEMPERATURE STUFFER CRIMPING APPARATUS James R. Hodges, Wilmington, Del., assignor to Joseph Bancroft and Sons Co., Wilmington, Del., 2 corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 574,366 Int. Cl. D02g 3/00; D0411 17/00 US. Cl. 28--1.7 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A stutter crimper including a pair of feed rolls mounted to feed a yarn into a crimping chamber. The feed rolls are mounted in eccentric bearings for adjustment. One of the rolls is carried in a pivoted bracket and is gear driven by a driving gear positioned to produce a moment for urging the rolls together. The crimping chamber is spring mounted for expansion in two directions. The chamber discharges into a cooling zone from which the yarn is withdrawn and a feeler varies the feed ratio to maintain constant the discharge point.

This invention relates to stufier crimpers and more particularly to a stutter crimper which is capable of operating at high temperatures such as the temperatures required for crimping glass, quartz, or ceramic fibers.

An object is to provide a crimper of the above type having novel and improved operating characteristics.

Another object is to provide a construction which permits free expansion of the parts while maintaining fixed clearances between the moving parts.

Another object is to provide a construction which permits accurate adjustment of the clearances between the feed rolls and the saddle of the crimping chamber and adjustments for maintaining parallelism of the feed rolls.

Another object is to provide drive means for the feed rolls which is adapted to hold the feed rolls in pressure contact with the yarn to be fed thereby.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed.

In accordance with the present invention the stufier crimper includes a closed crimping chamber having a saddle or nose piece which is to be set with respect to the feed rolls. The crimping chamber is mounted to engage a stop at or near the saddle and is spring-pressed both transversely and longitudinally so as to permit expansion thereof in all directions in response to variations in temperature of the metal components without altering the position of the saddle. The feed rolls are mounted on shafts which are eccentrically journalled in bearing housings for adjustment of the clearance between the feed rolls and the saddle and the bearings are mounted in brackets adapted to maintain parallelism of the feed rolls. 'One of the feed rolls is mounted on pivoted bracket arranged to permit relative movement in response to variations in thickness of the yarn as it passes through the bite of the rolls. The movable roll is driven by a gear which is positioned to produce a moment in the direction toward the bite of the rolls for thereby maintaining the rolls in pressure contact with the yarn.

The features of the invention will be better understood from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which a specific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan View, with parts broken away, showing a crimping apparatus embodying the invention;

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FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the crimping rolls and the drive mechanism;

FIG. 3a is a section taken on the line 3a-3a of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a transverse section taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 6 is a transverse section taken on the line 6-6 of FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings in more detail the invention is shown as embodied in a stutter crimper having a crimping chamber 10 and feed rolls 11 and 12 positioned to feed a yarn 13 into one end of the crimping chamber 10 for crimping therein. The crimping chamber 10 is formed in two halves 14 which are held together by screws 15. The chamber is shown as rectangular in cross-section, having flat sides 16 and top and bottom arcuate walls 17 and 18, respectively. The side walls 16 are cut away at their inlet end, FIG. 3a, to form a saddle 19 having edges 20 which register and have adjustable clearance with the peripheries of the feed rolls 11 and 12 and the top and bottom walls 17 and 18, have surfaces 21 extending over a portion of the flat end surfaces of the feed rolls 11 and 12 to form with the side walls 16 a saddle 19.

The apparatus is mounted in a bracket arrangement comprising upper and lower plates 25 and 26, respectively, which are connected and supported by vertical plates 27. The bottom surface of the two halves 14 of the chamber 10 is formed with a longitudinal V-shaped groove 31 which rests on a rod 32 which is carried in a similar groove 33 in the top of a bar 34 which slides vertically on a pair of spaced pins 35 and 36 which extend upwardly from the lower plate 26. The pins 35 and 36 are spaced apart to engage the ends of the rod 34 for preventing longitudinal movement thereof. An adjusting screw 37 in the lower plate 26 engages the bottom of the bar 34 for adjusting the crimping chamber 10 axially of the feed rolls 11 and 12.

The pin '35 enters a groove 41 in the bottom surface of the halves 14 which extends inwardly from the saddle 19 and terminates in a shoulder 42 which forms a stop to position the saddle. A similar pin 43 carried by the upper plate 25 enters a groove 44 on the top surface of the two halves 14 of the crimping chamber 10 and a spring-pressed pin 45 mounted in the upper plate holds the chamber 10 in position on the bar 34 while permitting vertical expansion and contraction as well as vertical adjustment of the position of the chamber. A bracket member 14a is fixed to each vertical side 14 of the crimper. Screws 46 carrying springs 47 pass through holes in each bracket leg 14b of each bracket 14a and are threaded into plate members 27a fixed to the vertical frame members 27. The springs 47 are located between the head portions of each screw 46 and the bracket legs 14!). The chamber is thus urged against the locating pins 35 and 43 (FIG. 2) so that a fixed clearance is maintained between the surfaces of the feed rolls 11 and 12, and the edges 20 of the chamber while allowing longitudinal expansion and contraction of the chamber.

The feed roll 11 is mounted on a shaft 51 (FIG. 5) which is journalled eccentrically in bearing housings 52 and 53 in the upper and lower plates 25 and 26, respectively. Said bearing-housings are adapted to be rotatably adjusted for positioning the feed roll clearance with the edges 20 of the saddle 19. The lower end of the shaft 51 is formed with a shoulder 54 which is held against a bearing 53a by a spring 55 in the upper housing 52 and permits expansion and contraction of the feed roll and also reduces the bearing chatter.

The feed roll 12 is carried on a shaft 56 which is journalled eccentrically in bearing housings 57 and 58. Thus both feed rolls can be adjusted to effect the desired clearance with edges of the saddle 19 by suitable rotation of the eccentric bearing housings 52, 53, 57 and 58.

Feed roll 12 is adjustable along its vertical axis so that a parallel relationship between it and the vertical axis of the non-adjustable feed roll 11 is maintained by positioning arms 61 and 62 so that shaft 56 carried in bearing housings 57 and 58 is parallel to shaft 51. Arms 61 and 62 are fixed in position after suitable adjustment for parallelism by lock nuts 69a on the ends of stabilizing bar 66.

Feed roll 12 is pivotally mounted with respect to feed roll 11 by rod 63 in brackets 65 carried by upper and lower plates and 26. The entire yoke assembly comprising arms 61 and '62, pivot rod 63, stabilizing bar 66 and feed roll 12, is adjustable vertically with respect to feed roll 11 so that the ends of feed roll 12 may be aligned with the ends of feed roll 11.

For this purpose both ends 63a of rods 63 are journalled in axially movable bearings 63b located in bores in brackets 65a and 65b. The lower bearing is adjustably positioned along its axis by a set screw 67 which is threaded into an end cap 67a. The cap 67a is secured to bracket 65b. A bearing cup 671) is slidably disposed between the outer ring of the lower bearing 63b and set screw 67 so that when the set screw is adjusted in the end cap 67a it will contact the bearing cup 67b and thus move the entire yoke assembly in a direction such that the lateral surfaces 11a and 12a of the feed rolls 11 and 12 will be axially aligned as shown in FIG. 4.

Thermal expansion in the longitudinal direction of the feed rolls 11 and 12 and the pivot rod 63 is permitted by the assemblies contained within eccentric housings 52 and 57 and also in the housing 57a, the latter being positioned in axial alignment with rod 63 and mounted on the upper bracket 65a. The mechanisms associated with housings 52 and 57 are substantially identical.

A bearing cap 57b, similar to the cap 67b, is located within a bore in plate 65a. A threaded center shaft 57c is fixed to the cap 57b and extends freely through a bore is threaded end closure 57d. A disc member 57c is slidably mounted on center shaft 570 and provides a bearing surface for one end of a compression spring 57f.

In operation the spring 57 f is compressed by threading the end closure 57d toward disc member 57e thus varying the end pressure on shaft 63. This pressure will keep the yoke assembly in proper alignment as described above. When the crimper reaches temperatures that produce expansion in the shafts 51, 56 and 63, the upper bearings contained in these shafts will slide within their respective bores and through the bearing caps and discs will compress the springs so that the thermal expansion will not warp the associated frame elements.

The shaft 56 of the movable feed roll 12 carries a gear 56a meshing with a gear 70 on a stub shaft 71. The shaft 71 is located in a plane such that a moment is produced which urges the feed roll 12 into engagement with the feed roll 11, thereby holding the feed rolls in pressureengagement during operation. A weight (not shown), attached to a cord 73 which is anchored to the movable arm 61 by a bracket 61a may also bias the feed rolls together.

The shaft 51 of the feed roll 11 carries a gear 77 meshing with a gear 78 on a drive shaft 79 which also carries a gear 80. The drive shaft 79 is driven by suitable means such as a motor (not shown). The gear 80 meshes with a gear 81 on the stub shaft 71. The arrangement is such that the feed rolls 11 and 12 are driven at a 1:1 ratio in the direction to feed the yarn 13 into the crimping chamber 104.

The yarn 13 is fed to the bite of the feed rolls by an eye 82 mounted on a block 83 which slides on rods 84 and is traversed by a traverse roll 85 having a traverse groove 86. The traverse roll 85 is mounted on a shaft 87 which is driven by suitable means not shown.

The traverse roll shaft 87 and the guide rods 84 are mounted in an adjustable bracket 27a comprising upper and lower plates 25a and 26a which are connected to and supported by a vertical plate 27b- The bracket 27a is adjustably supported from plate 27 through a Z-shaped brace 88. This brace is fixed to plate 27 by screws 89a at one end thereof, and at its opposite end is fixed to plate 27b by bolts 8% which project through elongated slots 890 in brace 88 and thread into plate 27b. As shown in FIG. 1 adjustment in the direction of arrow 27c will adjust the spacing of the eye 82 from the bite of the feed rolls 11 and 12 so as to vary the throw of the yarn in its traverse along the feed rolls.

A pair of side plates 90 (FIG. 2) are disposed on the discharge end of the chamber 10 and extend rearwardly through an opening 91 in a plate 92 which is mounted on brackets 93 attached to the upper and lower plates 25 and 26. A bottom spring plate 97 extends rearwardly between the plates 90 to support the core of crimped yarn discharged from the end of the chamber 10. This plate 97 carries an arm 98 which is adapted to actuate a control switch 99 for controlling the operation of either the feed-roll-drive motor of the drive motor of a take-up or winder mechanism in a sense to maintain the discharge end of the core of crimped yarn at a substantially constant location. A second plate 1% is pivotally mounted between the side plates 90 and extends rearwardly therebetween to rest on the top of the core for holding the core compacted and resting on the bottom spring plate 97. The crimped yarn is extracted from the core onto a winder or other take-up means not shown.

The above described apparatus is designed for use at high temperatures and suitable means may be provided for heating the crimping chamber 10 to the temperature required to soften and anneal filaments of glass or the like which are to be crimped therein. Such filaments may be preheated to a temperature just below their softening point if desired so as to minimize their tendency to break during the crimping operation. They remain in the chamber 10 for a sufliciently long time for annealing to take place so as to reduce the strains which may have been developed at the crimp angles. After discharge from the chamber 10 and during their travel between the plates 90 the filaments are cooled to a temperature such that the crimp is permanently set in the filaments and is not removed by winding the filaments under tension. When the tension'is released the crimp will reform as the filaments tend to return to the form in which they were annealed.

While the apparatus has been shown and described as particularly adapted for the treatment of yarns or filaments at high temperatures it is obvious that various features thereof may be used in crimping apparatus which is operated at lower temperatures and that the apparatus may be mounted to feed the filaments vertically or in directions other than horizontal as shown. The details shown in the drawings are for purposes of illustration only.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a stuffer crimper including a crimping chamber and a pair of feed rolls positioned to feed a filament into said crimping chamber to be folded over and crimped against a mass of previously crimped filaments in said chamber, said chamber having a saddle having edges cooperating with said feed rolls to form a confined crimping zone, and means mounting said feed rolls comprising shafts carrying the respective rolls, bearing elements at each end of said rolls in which said shafts are journalled, cylindrical bearing housings carrying each of said bearing elements, and support brackets carrying said housings, the bearing elements associated with at least one of said shafts being eccentrically mounted in their respective housings and said last housings being mounted for rotational adjustment in said brackets whereby the relative position of the roll associated therewith may be adjusted with respect to said saddle.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which said lastmentioned roll is mounted for rotation about a relatively fixed axis and said eccentrically mounted bearing elements are disposed at opposite ends thereof.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which one of said rolls is mounted on a pivoted bracket adapted to vary the displacement of said rolls and said eccentrically mounted bearing elements are disposed at opposite ends thereof.

4. In combination with a stutfer crimper including a crimping chamber and a pair of feed rolls disposed to feed filaments for crimping into said chamber, shafts carrying the respective feed rolls, bearing elements in which said shafts are journalled, a support member carrying the bearing elements of one said shafts, a bracket carrying the bearing elements of the other of said shafts, pivotal means mounting said bracket for swinging movement in a direction to vary the spacing between said rolls and means for adjusting said bracket in a direction axially of said rolls for thereby bringing the ends of the respective rolls into alignment.

5. In combination with a stufier crimper including a crimping chamber and a pair of feed rolls disposed to feed filaments for crimping into said chamber, shafts carrying the respective feed rolls, bearing elements in which said shafts are journalled, a support member carrying the bearing elements of one of said shafts, a bracket carrying the bearing elements of the other of said shafts, pivotal means mounting said bracket for swinging movement in a direction to vary the spacing between said rolls, said bracket including a pair of pivoted arms disposed respectively at opposite ends of said roll for supporting said last mentioned shaft, a member clamping said arms together for movement in unison, and means for adjusting the relative positions of said arms in said clamping means in a sense to adjust the parallelism of said rolls.

6. In combination with a pair of rolls between which material is to be fed, shafts carrying said rolls and connected for operation in unison, support means mounting one of said shafts for lateral movement for varying the spacing of said rolls, a driven gear on said last shaft, a further shaft offset from the plane of the roll shafts and a driving gear thereon in engagement with the driven gear, said gears meshing at a point such that the tangent thereto has a component in a direction whereby the rotation of said driving gear produces a moment in a direction to urge said rolls together.

7. In combination with a stutter crimper including a crimping chamber and a pair of feed rolls disposed to feed yarn for crimping into one end of said chamber, means mounting one of said feed rolls for rotation about a fixed axis, and means for mounting the other of said feed rolls for rotation about a movable axis, said last means including a shaft carrying said last roll and a shiftable bracket carrying said shaft, a driven gear mounted on said shaft and a driving gear meshing therewith and disposed to produce a moment in a direction to urge said rolls together as they rotate.

8. Crimping apparatus comprising a chamber having a saddle at its entrance end, a pair of feed rolls mounted to feed filaments for crimping into said saddle, positioning means located adjacent said saddle to position said chamber with respect to said feed rolls and spring means holding said chamber against said positioning means to permit expansion and contraction thereof, members supporting a core of the filaments upon discharge from said cramping chamber, and providing a cooling zone therefor, and feeler means actuated by one of said last members to control the relative rates of feed and withdrawal in a sense to maintain the discharge end of said core at a substantially constant location.

9. Crimping apparatus comprising a chamber having a saddle at its entrance end, a pair of feed rolls mounted to feed filaments for crimping into said saddle, support members for said rolls and said chamber, including a channel in which one side of said chamber is adapted to slide and including fixed stop means adjacent said saddle to position said saddle with respect to said rolls, spring means holding said saddle against said stop means and adapted to permit sliding movement of said chamber in said channel to accommodate longitudinal expansion thereof and resilient means engaging the other side of said chamber for holding said chamber in said channel while permitting expansion of said chamber in a transverse direction.

10. Apparatus as set forth in claim 9 including adjusting means for adjusting certain of said support members axially of said rolls.

11. Apparatus as set forth in claim 9 wherein said support members include a pivoted bracket, one of said rolls being mounted on said pivoted bracket and independent adjusting means is provided for adjusting the axial position of said last mentioned roll and of said chamber for thereby aligning said rolls with said saddle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 244,016 7/1881 Young 242-1585 632,666 9/ 1899 Wilkie 308-62 856,228 7/1907 Cromwell 308-1891 1,748,174 2/1930 Hirvonen 308-62 2,300,791 11/1942 Lodge 28-72 2,505,618 4/1950 Hammerle 28-72 2,793,418 5/1957 Pfau 28-72 2,856,640 10/1958 Klein 226-117 2,908,044 10/1959 Whitney 19-66 2,933,771 4/ 1960 Weinstock 19-66 3,000,060 9/1961 Shattuck et al 19-66 3,046,633 7/ 1962 Ohashi et al 28-1 3,162,924 12/ 1964 Richeson 28-1 2,918,069 12/1959 Brown et al 226-186 XR 3,328,851 7/ 1967 Whitehurst.

FOREIGN PATENTS 778,346 7/ 1957 Great Britain.

ROBERT R. MACKEY, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

